Alliance of Lordaeron (Century of Death)
The Great Alliance of Lordaeron was a military union of azerothians realms from the Eastern Kingdoms which combined to combat the Orcish Horde and its allies during the Second War. History After the brutal end of the First War on November 12th 592 K. C., the humans who could escape from Azeroth led by what remained of the armed forces fled through the Great Sea, sorrounding Baradin Bay (for the orcs were already launching a naval attack from their base on Balor Island). Their initial goal was to reach the gilnean port town of Westbank, but a storm caused them to travel futher north until they wrecked in a natural harborage on the western shore of Lordaeron in what now is Wrynn's Arrival. The Survivors of Azeroth were temporarily resettled around that area under the direction of Lord Regent, Sir Anduin Lothar. Lothar travelled to Lordaeron Capital to negotiate asylum from king Terenas II, whom he also had to request to form a common front against the Horde. By the time, the orcs were pushing north from Khaz Modan (which they had invaded and laid waste to) into Stromgarde. By the time, Lordaeron was organized into Military Regions, with each Regional Commander assited by a Support Staff, and a Supreme Commander with overall command over the entire Defense Forces was headquartered at the Capital. King Terenas was eager to form a continent-wide coalition to face the so called "Orcish Threat". The lordaeronian ambassador to Stromgarde was quick to sign a Treaty of Alliance against the Orcish Threat on 10th January 593 K. C., a treaty which placed the entire stromgardian forces under the operational control of a lordaeronian attaché (yet Stromgarde withheld control of logistics, intelligence and specialties). The military regions of Lordaeron were classified as Imminent Threat, Immediate Threat and Distant Threat. The units of the Army of Azeroth were allocated to different regions according to their Threat Level and their specific needs. The whole of the azerothian refugees was transferred to the Southern Military Region and Lord Lothar was appointed as Regional Commander, South on 1st February. On 4th February he resigned his position to Lord Bruinen Turalyon, to assume as Foreign Advisor on the Orcish Threat to the Supreme Commander. He was later appointed Chief of Staff to the Supreme Commander on 2nd March. Archmage Landazar Netherspawn, Steward of the Violet Citadel (Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces of Dalaran) signed a Treaty of Tripartite Assitance with Lothar and Terenas II on 20th February, providing that he'd be the Foreign Advisor on Magical Defense to the Supreme Commander. On 22th February, Kul Tiras requeseted Lordaeron's land forces support through the Joint War Effort Pact, a treaty which placed the fleets of "Lordaeron and Allies" (Dalaran, Azeroth and Stromgarde) under the command of Kul Tiras. On 5th March, Aerie Peak signed the Aerial Support Treaty, placing itself in command of the air forces of "Lordaeron and Allies" (now including Kul Tiras). By then, the appelative "Lordaeron and Allies" was well established to refer to the network of allied contries and orders linked to Lordaeron. A summit of sovereigns from the whole continent was called to the Capital on 7th March. Ironforge and Gnomeregan signed as full members of the newly established Alliance to Combat the Orcish Threa't, while both Alterac and Gilneas only compromised to provide supplies and support on the Imminent Threat regions (while the rest of the counties were compromising to send support in an expeditionary force against the orcs to liberate the south). Quel'Thalas would join the Alliance on 8th April, after an ambush on elven explorers near Tarren Mill. The Allied Forces were placed under a combined staff called the High Command. The nations agreed to name Lothar as the neutral party in command of the Allied Forces. Each nation had an attaché on the Combined Staff, and the Allied Forces were divided in Compromised Units (which were under operational command of the Alliance) and Independent Units (which were commanded by the member nations). Structure Historians distinguish between the period of Lordaeron-and-Allies and the period of the Allied Forces. In the former, Lordaeron led the war effort by directing and coordinating its allies via differentiated treaties. In the latter, the azerothiand realms established a unified High Command in order to direct their forces operationally. Initial Structure: Lordaeron and Allies By the time of the Alliance Summit of March , king Terenas II had appointed Sir Anduin Lothar, the Lord Regent of the Survivors of Azeroth and Knight-Champion of the Brotherhood of the Horse, to the position of Supreme Commander, Lordaeron Defense Forces. Underneath him were the ten regional commanders (West, East, Northwest, Northeast, South, Strip, Lordamere, Darrowmere, Capital and Stratholme) who held command over land forces and auxiliary specialists (medics, priests and engineers mostly) on their area of responsibility. Lothar appointed high general Sir Saidan Dathrohan, a knight from Lordaeron, to be his Chief of Staff, and Sir Bruinen Turalyon, to be his Lieutenant, both were paladins of the Silver Hand. Also, the Regional Commander, South, was the azerothian paladin Sir Gavinrad Nicholas Buzan, who had responsibility for the azerothian refugee camps (all of them located in his region); whilst Sir Tirion Fordring, a lordaeronian, was Regional Commander, Stratholme (charged with the protection of temples and religious sanctuaries), and Sir Uther Lightbringer, another lordaeroanian, and both were paladins of the Silver Hand. Attached to the General Staff was the Director of Strategic Intelligence, Talbot Mallor. Daelin Proudmoore, Lord Admiral of Kul Tiras, was given overall command of the naval forces, both maritime and amphibious, along all naval facilities no matter their location. Archmage Landazar Netherspawn, a member of the dalaranian Council of Six, was given overall command of magic-wielders in military service. And Kurdran Wildhammer, Chief Thane of Aerie Peak, was placed as commander of all aerial forces and facilities. Sir Uther Lightbringer, lordaeronian, was the Commandant of the Silver Hand and led all forces of the Church (comprising divine-magic users and heavy cavalry soldiers known as paladins). They all had no formal rank in the lordaeronian armed forces, so they were nos commissioned to command under the formal military hierarchy, but rather delegated command under treaty terms. Non-lordaeronians could not attain military rank (except for the azerothians, who were granted citizenship under the Survivors and Refugees Act), so these attached commander were labeled Foreign Advisors to the Supreme Commander. Only Uther was formally commissioned as Spiritual Advisor to the Supreme Commander. Alliance Compact The Alliance Compact outlined the bases for the functioning of the Allied Powers. The treaty constituted only two organisms for the Alliance: the High Command and the Council. The Council of Allied Powers was basicly a diplomatic meeting attended by the Ministers Permanant designated by each member nation's ruler or ruling body. It met regularly every seven days on a location of the Chairman's choosing. The chairman was one of the Ministers Permanant designated by the Sovereigns (from 598, the position was rotating among the nations yearly). The only powers of the Council were to appoint and remove the High Commander at will, and impeach any of his officers to the Sovereigns. Their most basic function was to handle weekly joint reports to their rulers and denounce any violation of the Compact or the Sovereigns' orders. They could also summon the Sovereigns to a meeting or propose policy to them, whough it was rarely done. The Sovereigns of the Alliance took decisions by consensus, so that no policy could be considered valid and enforced by the allied institutions unless it was agreed upon by the totality of the member nations. Their powers were to interpret and amend the Compact, and take all measures necesary to ensure its compliance. The sovereigns could issue instructions to the High Command by an agreement: a document that circulated among the various capitals and was signed and authorized by each nation individually. However, this proccess of decision-making was considered way to slow, so king Terenas II came out with a solution. The Council would call (almost always on his request) a summit of the Sovereigns or their Ministers Plenipotentiary that could take decisions by a two-thirds vote. The Allied Powers Summits could issue two kinds of decree: Statements (which provided instructions for the allied institutions to enforce, on the basis of the existing Compact) and Joint Declarations (which were mostly used to amend the Compact and create and administer new subsidiary organs to the Alliance). The High Commander was the Alliance's military leader. He had overall operation control of the forces committed to him by the member nations. He had supreme power of decision over the administration of troops, facilities, resources and supplies. He was charged with enforcing the decisions of the Sovereigns. He would be assisted in his duties by a Combined Staff deparated into seven departments: * Deparment of Force Readiness; charged with handling those forces passing from national command to joint allied command. * Deparment of Operational Capability; charged with general planning and contingence planning. * Department of Strategic Warfare; managing the elite, joint task forces and the crisis-managing, rapid reaction teams and other high-readiness and emergency-responding elements. * Department of Tactical Combat; charged with commanding the regular unified forces. * Deparment of Joint Intelligence; intelligence, surveillance, covert activities, secret operations, recognaissance and special forces. * Department of Resource Management; general logistics, comunications, transportation, finance, deployment and supplies of financial resources, war materiel, soldiers, officers, services and specialties. * Department of Military Partnership; attaché to the Council and the Summit, a political advisor charged with coordinating joint training and preparation among the Allied Powers's armed forces. * Deparment of Policy Development; the senior advisor on the enactment and implementation of common policies. The Staff Officers were only devoted to gather information, report and advise to the High Commander, and had no operational control whatsoever. The allied forces were rather divided into Unified Commands with either geographical or functional responsibility. * High Commander, Allied Forces ** Allied Forces East Command (Unified Army East) ** Allied Forces West Command (Unified Army West) ** Allied Forces North Command (Unified Army North) ** Allied Forces South Command (Unified Army South) ** Allied Forces Maritime Command (Unified Navy) ** Allied Forces Alterac Command (Unified Operative Group, Alterac) ** Allied Forces Strike Command (Rapid Reaction Contingents) ** Allied Forces Magical Command (Magical Defence Contingents) ** Allied Forces Forward Command (Vanguard Advance Contingents) ** Allied Powers Covert Command (Undercover Operations) ** Allied Powers Armament Command (Egineering and Works) ** Allied Powers Welfare Command (Medicine and Services) ** Allied Powers Sustainment Command (Logistical Support) Members The members of the Alliance are as follows: * The '''Kingdom of Lordaeron '''was the founding member and held the chair for the whole life of the Alliance. KIng Terenas would host the Summits and chair the Council personally, so that he may arbitrate and control their decisions. ** The so-called '''Northern Vassals '''were non-independent kingdoms attached to the diplomatical and military decisions of Lordaeron. They had no seat nor in the Council nor in the Summit but however they sent some ambassadors to attend the Summit meeting and consult the members. * The '''Survivors of Azeroth '''were the citizens who had fled from the Kingdom of Azeroth. They were mostly serving on the lordaeronian armies or interned in the lordaeronian refugee camps, so they were practically a lordaeronian vassal. They would later reasume the identity of the '''Kingdom of Azeroth '(or '''Stormwind). During the Second War, the Survivors were led by Lord Regent Lothar. After his death, Nicholas Gavinrad resumed his duties as Regent until young king Varian Wrynn reached majority two month later. * The '''Arcane Republic of Dalaran '''had close ties both to Lordaeron and Azeroth. It was ruled by an ancient order of magicians with little care for nationalorigins. Its leader, Antonidas Enchanteur, was a dalarani native, yet three of his five of his collegues were foreigners: Kel'Thuzad and Modera were dalaranians, but Krasus and Kael'Thas were thalassian (Krasus was actually a dragon in disguise and Kael was the crown prince of Quel'Thalas), and Drenden was stromic. * The '''Kingdom of Stromgarde '''was led by king Thoras Trollbane, a close friend of Terenas II. Faithfully committed in soul and resources to the allied cause, the stromics were fierce in fighting the orcish armies, yer they advocated their own interest above all else. Stromgarde left the Alliance after heavy disagreements with Lordaeron for orcish rebellions on the internment camps located on the Stromic Occupation Zone, but remained a member of the Fiduciary Committee of Alterac. ** The '''Kingdom of Tol Barad '''was a small island-dominion of Stromgarde. It had no king, but unswered to the kings of Strom. Though a protectorate, it mantained staunch sovereignity under the rule of its dukes. The baradians were represented at the Council by Stromgarde's minister, but the duke was allowed to attend and vote in the Summits. * The '''Maritime Republic of Kul Tiras '''was an independent confederation of portuary cities. They provided most of the allied naval forces. Lord Admiral Daelin Proudmoore was a consolidated anti-orc man, who sought to encourage any anti-orcish policy he could. * The '''Kingdom of Gilneas '''joined the Alliance after failure to reppeal the orcs from Zul'Dare. King Gryemane offered only logistic support (he commited no forces to the High Command and other joint operations) and was not represented at the Council, but attended the Summits. However, he sent a detachment to support the invasion of Alterac. Gilneas left the Alliance as soon as the war ended, but remained a member of the Fiduciary Committee of Alterac. Council and Summits Commands